From the desk of Mark Ford:

How to Get Rich (Still) on the Internet

 

Far and away, as I have said, the best side business for me is real estate. 

 

But that still leaves an entire domain we have yet to speak about. The Internet. 

 

These days, the Internet can seem like old news. It has now been around in the public eye for the better part of 30 years. 

 

The initial “digital goldrush” has certainly come to an end, but we still need to consider something that remains true.

 

The introduction of an “online” marketplace has been the most impactful change in society since the industrial revolution. 

 

And as you likely know, the industrial revolution made a lot of people very rich.

 

But what you may not realize is that it also took place across 150 years from start to finish. That’s how long it took for the emerging technologies of the time to become truly integrated with wider society. 

 

Let’s be conservative and say the online revolution will only last half as long. 

 

That still means there are another 45 years left of this “industrial revolution part 2.” 

 

So even if you missed the first call to arms… There is still a lucrative bandwagon to jump on.

 

Ordinary people are scared to jump on the bandwagon. Don’t be…

 

There has never been a better time than now to capitalize on the dot-com economy. That’s because the first phase — the time of hype and sensationalism — is pretty much over. The dust is clearing. It’s getting easier to distinguish a good business from a bad one.

 

Of course, it is also harder to raise capital. Investors are looking for profits (imagine that!), not just growth. But the good news is that the best business ideas — the ones you will most likely succeed at — do not require millions of dollars in start-up money.

 

So, what does it look like to build wealth online?

 

Let’s first dispel some common myths about how to get rich through the Internet.

 

Too many people look at the “first phase” top performers — in other words, the famous men and women who created wealth out of hype and frenzy — as the only role models. 

 

But just because they made money back then, it doesn’t mean they built a good business that would work today.

 

A short list of these top performers would have to include Jeff Bezos, creator of Amazon.com ($7.8 billion); Jay Walker of Priceline.com ($4.1 billion); Pierre Omidyar and Margaret Whitman of eBay ($4.9 billion and $1 billion, respectively); Joe Ricketts of Ameritrade ($2.4 billion); Steve Case, Barry Schuler, Robert Pittman, and Ted Leonsis of America Online (hovering around a measly billion dollars each); and Silicon Valley venture capitalists Johan Doerr and Vinod Khosla at a billion each.

 

Not every one of these lucky billionaires created good businesses. Some of them got rich simply by selling a hot idea into a frenzied market.

 

So, if you want your own Internet fortune, you have to choose the right success story. 

 

One I’d recommend is that of Jerry Yang and David Filo — two young men who not long ago were graduate students at Stanford. To fill their spare time, they created a list of their favourite websites, which they shared with some friends and fellow students. The response was positive, so they developed it some more. Before long, thousands of people were using their site for guidance.

 

Netscape and America Online, among others, offered to buy them out. But they weren’t interested. Instead, they renamed the site Yahoo. Today, Filo and Yang are billionaires. (estimated to be worth $3.7 billion each.)

 

What’s the lesson here?

 

What’s great about what Filo and Yang did was this:

 

1. They developed a useful service, one that benefited specifically from being online.

2. They spent most of their early years establishing a market for it.

3. They found a business model that allowed them to sell it cheap.

 

What started as a simple service to their friends developed quickly into something the whole world wanted. Before they got their first public dollar, they had proven that there was a market for their service.

 

Now, it is highly unlikely that you are going to make your Internet fortune by starting a new portal like they did.

 

And it is equally improbable that you will create anything very large. There is simply too much competition from the established superpowers.

 

But there is a key lesson we can take from Filo and Yang, and apply to any aspiring online business:

 

Use existing demand to build a business, don’t try to create it.

 

One of the best things about the Internet is how easy it became to find different markets, establish if they were viable, and advertise to people directly based on who they are or what they like.

 

So, how do you start your own successful Internet business?

 

To make your own little Internet fortune, you should follow the Yahoo model.

 

First, think of something you can do or sell that:

(a) interests you,

(b) has genuine value,

(c) can be sold at a discount, and

(d) can be tested inexpensively.

 

Let’s use e-newsletter Early To Rise as an example... a digital newsletter I used to run that helped people develop their career. 

 

I began this service as a free benefit to some friends and colleagues. They found it useful. I figured out a way to price it more cheaply than comparable services, and I tested it before I spent any money on it.

 

ETR benefited from Internet delivery. It arrived early in the morning in your mailbox. The kind of benefit ETR delivered was best appreciated in small, daily doses. 

 

The decision I made to test it first and figure out if there was a market was what led to its success.

 

I stuck to the guidelines I laid out above.

 

As I’m sure you have noticed, these guidelines also stick to the fundamentals of building lasting wealth that we have spoken about over the last few weeks. 

 

By simply translating these lessons to an online space, I was able to launch another profitable business.

 

The online revolution will surely have some significant changes along the way. But there is no doubt that it will continue to provide many, many opportunities for new business.

 

The best time to get into a boom is early –– but not too early. If the Industrial Revolution lasted 150 years and the online revolution is due to last another 45, so there is still time to make the most of it. 

 

While the Internet continues to grow and develop, make sure you’re able to ride the wave.

 

What are you waiting for?

 

Think about what you want to do. Then think about how it can be better accomplished via Internet delivery. Toss around some ideas with your friends. Take some time to think about it.

 

Then, take action.

 

Tomorrow, I will give you some specific examples of strong business models, including several businesses you could start online.

Keep an eye out for tomorrow’s email with the subject line: “Other Side Businesses to Consider.”

 

To your wealth,

- Mark Ford

 

P.S. You don’t need to be the next Jeff Bezos to get rich online. Mark’s built multiple successful digital businesses by applying timeless principles, not hype. 

Inside the DIYwealth Club, you’ll see exactly how to launch your own internet-based income stream the smart way… with low overhead, real demand, and zero need to “go viral.” 

Click here to learn how to build real wealth in the digital age.